Samuel (Walter) SPARROW, emigrant

[Allan F Sparrow]

Family tradition, as relayed by my father some years ago, has it that this great-great-uncle of mine emigrated to the USA. This happened most likely in the 1860s, when he was in his twenties, and most likely of all, around 1865-66, when his siblings also began to leave Suffolk, though on rather shorter journeys: four were in Epsom, Surrey, in 1871, and a fifth at Dorchester, Dorset.

Would some enthusiastic soul, with knowledge of passenger lists and/or American records, like to give a helping hand to find out more? (There is a possibility that Samuel's father went with him, though if so he returned to England in time for the 1881 census, and died in Epsom in 1883.)

These are the recorded facts about Samuel:
Born in Tuddenham St Mary, Suffolk, in 1841: I have the birth certificate. He was son of William Sparrow (1811-83), a brickmaker, and his wife Maria (née Fitches) (1815-51): my great-great-grandparents.
In 1851 a son of the right age and born in the right place was listed as Walter, not as Samuel, but I think it's the same person. (As a point of reference, his brother Peter was so registered, and so listed in 1851, but in all subsequent records he was George Peter, George P., or just George.)
In 1861, most of the family, including Samuel/Walter, are missing: probably because the house where they lived in 1851 was not included in the 1861 census, as far as my old eyes can see, though it reappeared in 1871, 1881, and 1891, with different occupants.
I have found no other record of Samuel (or Walter) in England. (The death registered at Mildenhall in 1855 was not this Samuel, but his cousin, a son of his father's younger brother Elias.)

My subscription sites have nothing to offer on Samuel's emigration, and my subscriptions are for British records only.
FamilySearch has a Samuel Sparrow living at Sycamore, Illinois, in the period 1867-78 (at least). One reference is to his naturalisation in 1877; the other two record the deaths of two of his children, in 1942 and 1918; they were born in Sycamore in 1867 and 1878. The father Samuel is said to have been born in England; the mother Harriet Brisbin or Brosben is said to have been born in England in one record, but in Canada in the other. I have found no such person in England, but FamilySearch has some Brisbins in Ontario, Canada. Of course these people may be nothing to do with my family, and there were other Sparrows in Canada, though not nearly as many as there were in Suffolk - I've looked into them, extensively!

Any pointers, please?

Allan Sparrow

[Megan Roberts]

I hope the following might help a little:

US Naturalisation Record Indexes 1791-1992 have a Samuel Sparrow born Great Britain being registered 11 Aug 1877 in the court districts of Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Iowa. But there is no other useful genealogical information.

U.S. and Canada, Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s-1900s provided by “GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY OF DEKALB COUNTY, ILLINOIS, compiler Naturalization Records of DeKalb County, Illinois. Sycamore, Ill.: the society, 1981. 131p.” Lists a primary immigrant Samuel Sparrow arriving in 1877 in DeKalb Co., Illinois. However, there is no other information.

Illinois, Marriages, 1851-1900 : Samuel Sparrow married Hattie Brisben 22 Jan 1868 in De Kalb (This record can be found at the County Court Records located at Sycamore, IL.).


1870 US Census has the following family living in Sycamore, DeKalb, Illinois:
Name Birth place Age Occupation
Samuel Sparrow England 23 Works on a farm
Harriet Sparrow Canada 21
James Sparrow Illinois 1


1880 US Census has the following family living in Mayfield, DeKalb, Illinois:
Name Birth place Age Occupation
Samuel Sparrow England 31 Farming
Harriet Sparrow Canada 31
Albert Sparrow Illinois 11
Nellie J. Sparrow Illinois 1


1900 US Census has the following family living in Sycamore, DeKalb, Illinois:
Name Birth place Age Immigration Year Marriage Year Father / Mother birthplace
Samuel Sparrow England 52 1864 1868 England/ both
Harriet Sparrow Canada [England] 50 1868 1868 Canada English / both
Nellie Hart Illinois 21 - 1895
George Hart Ireland 25 1883 1895 Ireland / both


Illinois, Deaths and Stillbirths Index, 1916-1947: Mrs Nellie Josephine Hart (Sparrow) born 21 Dec 1878 died 29 Mar 1918 in Sycamore, DeKalb, Illinois – Father Samuel Sparrow born England mother Harriet Brosben born Canada.

Web: Illinois, Find A Grave Index, 1809-2012:
Name: Harriett Louise Brisbin Sparrow
Birth Date: Jun 1849
Age at Death: 66
Death Date: 12 Aug 1915
Burial Place: Sycamore, DeKalb County, Illinois, USA

[Allan F Sparrow]

Thanks a lot for all that information!

However, it looks as if this may be a false trail, as the age for Samuel does not fit. That need not be decisive, as his idea of his age seems to vary - and even if it's the wrong guy, it's better to eliminate him than remain in total doubt.

[Allan F Sparrow]

Been scratching around to see who this guy might have been if he was not "my" Samuel, and there is a good candidate, a Samuel Sparrow born in Horham, Suffolk in 1847, who was in Suffolk in 1851 and 1861 but not thereafter; no sign of a death, either. He was in agriculture, too, whereas "my" Samuel was brought up in a brickmaking family: both his brothers were brickmakers through their working lives. This Horham Samuel is actually on one of the trees I constructed when delving into as many Suffolk Sparrows as I could, with the comment "not found after 1861"!

[thewideeyedowl]

Hi Allan

Yes - this sure is a tough one! Do you know why Samuel/Walter might have emigrated? There was a lot of assisted emigration in the mid-19th century.

If you go to Access to Archives (a2a) via TNA (The National Arcives) you can do a search. Here is the link to a2a: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/a2a

I entered Suffolk/emigration/1840-1880 in the relevant search boxes, which brought up 41 results. You can then try filtering them via the Advanced Search page. Unfortunately, the records are not available to consult online, but - as you drill down - you will find that there are often some quite good abstracts. IF you think you might have found your man, then it could be worth contacting the holding depository to sound them out about it - this would probably involve paying a search fee and fees for any photocopying (plus postage, of course).

Not much help, but the best I can do on a Sunday afternoon.

Swooping off again...

The Wideeyed owl

[Allan F Sparrow]

Thanks for the info and link: I'll poke around, but probably not right now.

There's no specific reason for the emigration that I know of, but it's clear the whole family was fed up with Suffolk, or their part of it. Maybe the death of the matriarch, Maria (Fitches) Sparrow, in 1851 (in childbirth, poor woman, and the child lived only four months) was a factor in unsettling them. All that is certain is that Samuel is said to have emigrated, while his brothers and sisters went to Surrey or Dorset in the later 1860s (different definite dates for each), and father William's whereabouts are not known between his wife's death and 1881. Samuel's brothers, Isaac and George Peter, continued their brickmaking in Surrey, very successfully in the case of George Peter: yet his elder son chose to emigrate in 1901. In his case I know the details of his passage, because he was recorded at Ellis Island.

My sister thinks that as our father talked about Sam (whom he would not have known) quite often, he must have thrived at least for a while, and kept in touch - but who can tell, at this distance in time?

[susan-y]

Ancestry has this marriage:

Name:
Samuel Sparrow

Gender:
Male

Spouse Name:
Hattie Brisben

Marriage Date:
22 Jan 1868

Marriage County:
De Kalb

Courtesy the County Court Records located at Sycamore, IL.


And this is them on the 1880 census which is a free to view census on Ancestry.

Samuel..born 1849 age 31 England ( as were his parents)
Harriet,, born 1849 age 31 Canada ( as were her parents)
Albert, age 11
Nellie J, age 1
They lived in Mayfield, DeKalb, Illinois

I don't think this is the correct Samuel either, as he is a farmer and lives next to a William Sparrow who is also a farmer, also born in England.

[Allan F Sparrow]

Thanks for taking the trouble to look.
This agrees with what was posted earlier, and I now feel pretty sure that this Illinois family was not "my" Samuel and his brood, though they could well be the guy from Horham, Suffolk.

What is now needed is another find of a Samuel in North America...

[Allan F Sparrow]

What is now needed is another find of a Samuel in North America...

Well, I tried a search for American records at fmp, and got a list of various Samuels of about the right age, mostly living in Ohio, but as my subscription doesn't cover American records, I couldn't go any further with them, unless I should choose to upgrade or buy some credits. I'm thinking about that...

[susan-y]

According to what I have found..the ones in Ohio were born in Ohio I tried Canada as well, but my internet has been very sketchy this afternoon so will see if I have better luck this evening.

Sue